Moving across the surface of waters such as lakes, rivers and streams, bays and even oceans in or on human powered watercraft is a popular recreational activity. Various types of watercraft are available to pursue this activity and may include canoe and kayak types of watercraft which allow the user to sit within the watercraft while more recent sit on top type of watercraft have the user sitting on a deck of the watercraft. Propulsion through the water is achieved by manual user operation of a single- or double-bladed paddle. Such types of watercraft are generally single-hulled and are fairly stable in rough water.
Newer types of kayaks are designed for the user to stand upright while paddling around the water similar to the operator of a classic Venetian gondola. These standup kayaks are substantially less stable in rougher or swifter waters. Further, many of these canoe and kayak type of watercraft are generally slow through the water and difficult or physically challenging and exhausting to use. Additionally, when a user is thrown or falls off or out of these types of watercraft, it is often difficult for the user to reenter the watercraft while in deep water. This may require the user to return to the shore or shallower waters to reenter or reboard the watercraft.
Some types of watercraft are available which allow a user to essentially walk on the water surface, i.e. to move the legs in a sort of walking movement while riding on the watercraft. However, these known watercrafts suffer from the same instability and difficulty of reentry that the known types of canoes and kayaks suffer from.
Accordingly, there continues to be a need for a quick and stable standup type of water watercraft that is easy to operate. There is also a need for a standup type of watercraft that is easy to reboard and physically less stressful to operate.